Summer vacation is so long-awaited and passes so quickly! It is designed to restore lost energy, bring joy and new impressions. However, in some cases, on the contrary, fatigue, disappointment and new sins are acquired.
What should be the rest
You can't be lazy, but it's also impossible to work seven days a week. A person must rest. Even man-made household appliances are not deprived of rest. So the refrigerator should be switched off periodically so as not to burn out. Change of work and rest is a natural regime for all living beings on Earth.
Rest should be meaningfully rewarding. Sometimes, in order to relax, you just need to change the main field of activity. Now many are busy with work that does not bring satisfaction, and they need rest like air. And where there is heavy physical labor, it is also impossible to do without relaxation for a long time.
A constantly working person commits a sin, as well as not working at all! God advised man to rest and not overload his younger brothers. The earth also needs rest. Therefore, it is recommended not to sow the same piece of land for two years in a row, but to give it a rest. They say that at this time she goes under steam. It is believed that a rested land will yield twice the harvest.
Summer rest
Summer - a couple of vacations and an Orthodox person is faced with posts at this time (Uspensky, Petrovsky). It can be difficult to combine the canons of Orthodoxy and bodily rest. In fact, during this period, travelers have some relaxation in fasting. They can consume whatever is offered to them in hotels. After all, you will not delve into what you paid money for, and often not small ones.
A person leaving on vacation is at risk. He tends to behave worse than at home. For a whole year he saved money for this purpose and considers himself entitled to lead a carefree life without denying himself anything. In these conditions, a breeding ground for a number of sins arises. Everything that interests modern youth on vacation is the beach, girls, alcoholic beverages. Accordingly, drunkenness, idleness, fornication, etc. arise. A person, initially breaking away from his familiar environment and having extra money in his pocket, will most likely return home with a burdened soul.
It would be nice if he didn't forget about books on vacation. Vacation is the time to read: at the train station, at the airport, on the plane or on the train. During working hours, he is unlikely to succeed. On vacation, you need to devote less time to gadgets. They enslave us on ordinary days and do not need to succumb to them during rest.
Travel opens up new facets in a person. This is a great opportunity to expand your horizons: new places, traditions, attractions. On vacation, a city person certainly needs to improve his health by exposing his mortal body to the sun.
Before taking up any extreme type of tourism, you need to take a blessing from a clergyman for a trip. Moreover, you need careful preparation for this and good physical shape. You need to take care of yourself, because senseless death is the worst kind of death.
It is a city person who is accustomed to physical inactivity and staring at a computer monitor all year round who needs active rest: hiking in the mountains, in the forest, boat trips, etc. He needs to strain to go beyond his limits, and vacation is a great time for this. It would be more correct to do what the hard worker lacks in the usual period: physical activity, enrichment with spiritual food or intellectual pursuits.
The dangers of rest
Often people cannot enjoy the present, looking ahead and worrying about the future. Thus, while resting, they are already worried about work again. Accordingly, the rest turns out to be nervous. This is a sign of a sick soul. We must try to live here and now. Pascal said: "If you dig into our thoughts, then there will be only the past and the future, and there is almost no present." A person needs to learn to live for today! This also applies to recreation.
There is a saying: "Business is time, and fun is an hour." It must be remembered that the rest, sooner or later, ends and do not become discouraged. And to prepare for the rest, realizing that this is temporary and someday you will have to return to your everyday routine again.
If you have to travel to the countries of Indochina, where Buddhist temples are located, you need to be careful so as not to accidentally "change" God. There is a risk of eating food sacrificed to idols, lighting a candle by some eight-armed idol, kneeling down or donating to a Buddhist temple. Thus, an Orthodox person, visiting such places, runs the risk of committing idolatry.
If a company of non-believers comes across on a journey, then you need to behave simply, inconspicuously and save your soul with a secret prayer. You must be able to keep silent about God, and not show your faith to unbelieving friends.
Rest is necessary, but you should do it right. It is advisable not to accumulate sins and not to waste time. It is important to remember that you will have to return to your daily environment and be prepared for this. An Orthodox person should not forget about prayer and thank God for everything.
Based on a conversation with Archpriest Andrei Tkachev.
